The continued recovery in commodity prices from last week’s reversals helped the Jakarta Composite Index to a second day of gains, boosted by investors seeking assets in emerging markets.

“There was a significant increase in commodity prices, especially in the energy sector, that helped boost local equities. Crude oil rebounded on Wednesday, and palm oil continued its gains,” said Ibrahim, an analyst at Harvest International Futures.

“The heavy trading volume and trading value today was mostly caused by the crisis in developed markets. Global investors see growing demand for commodities, so they tend to focus their investment on commodity producers,” Ibrahim said.

Harum Energy, an Indonesian coal producer, rose 0.5 percent to Rp 9,250. The company said its coal production may exceed 10 million tons this year compared with 7.4 million tons in 2010. Next year’s production is projected to reach 14 million tons.

Astra International, Indonesia’s largest automotive retailer, gained 2.4 percent to Rp 61,110. It said on Wednesday that it had signed a $145 million, 36-month loan agreement for general funding purposes.

The rupiah was little changed, at 8,553 to the US dollar at the close on Thursday, up from 8,557 the day before. “Improved sentiment toward emerging-market assets is supporting the rupiah,” said Mika Martumpal, a currency analyst at Bank Commonwealth.